Takeaways from OWPT25: The Optical Wireless Power Conference

By Ortal Alpert, CTO & Co-Founder at Wi-Charge

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend OWPT25, the Optical Wireless Power Transmission Conference in Japan, where leading experts gathered to share progress and discuss challenges in the field of Optical Wireless Power (OWP). It was an enlightening experience, offering a clear view of how far we’ve come, and how much further we need to go.

One standout observation: Wi-Charge remains the only company with a commercially available product and live installations in the market today. While we’re proud of that leadership position, I’m hopeful that other players will soon bring their own systems to market. Healthy competition brings fresh ideas and drives innovation - and thanks to our robust IP portfolio, we’re well-positioned to benefit from a growing ecosystem.

I was expecting to see more progress toward complete OWP systems—solutions that encompass every essential component, from power supply and laser drivers to air transmission models, photovoltaic receivers, MPPT, and customer-facing electronics—all while meeting the highest safety standards. Unfortunately, this level of system integration is still lacking, but I remain optimistic that continued R&D will close these gaps.

That said, some of the academic work being done on underwater and space-based wireless power systems is exciting. While these applications are still largely theoretical, the creativity and technical achievements on display hint at the broad potential of optical wireless power.

One critical area that was noticeably underrepresented at the conference was safety. At Wi-Charge, safety is non-negotiable. All our products meet Class 1 laser safety standards, and we follow rigorous design, testing, and review processes to ensure absolute safety for users-even at scale. Any system deployed in public spaces must remain safe under all conditions, including misuse, component failure, or extreme environmental factors. This principle is foundational to our engineering approach.

Some of the safety strategies presented at the conference were concerning. For example, systems that detect humans crossing the beam path only worked under ideal conditions. Even more alarming were outdoor systems using Class 4 lasers-which are inherently hazardous outside controlled environments. While these might be acceptable in underwater or space use cases, terrestrial systems must meet much stricter safety criteria.

Whether powering supermarket displays, drones, or 5G infrastructure, wireless power systems should be as safe as a nightlight in a child’s room-posing no risk under any circumstance. That’s the standard we hold ourselves to, and the standard the industry must embrace to succeed at scale.

As the optical wireless power field continues to evolve, we welcome collaboration, dialogue, and innovation from across the ecosystem. If you’re building in this space—or thinking about it-let’s connect. Together, we can shape a safer, smarter future for wireless energy.

Interested in partnering or learning more?

Whether you’re developing next-gen retail tech, connected infrastructure, or untethered consumer devices, reach out at contactus@wi-charge.com or request a demo to see how Wi-Charge can help power your vision, safely and wirelessly